


Just Another Case of Best Friends in Love

by LazyWriterGirl



Series: Femslash February 2017 - I Write Best When I'm Writing Gay [4]
Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Neighbours, Alternate Universe - No Bending, F/F, Femslash February 2017, First Kiss, Fluff, It's all fluff, Love Confessions, honestly what is this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-14
Updated: 2017-02-14
Packaged: 2018-09-24 06:47:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,175
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9709016
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LazyWriterGirl/pseuds/LazyWriterGirl
Summary: “You notice how we always end up here?”“On the porch?”“I mostly just meant together…but yes, that too.”Or, there’s nothing original about their love story, but they’re both fine with that; because original or not, it’s still theirs, and nothing can change that. Not if they can help it.Femslash February Prompt 4/12 - Porch





	

It’s midway through the last month of summer and soon Korra will be heading into her final year of high school. Her final year of seven-hours-straight school days and a rotation of teachers that neither enlighten nor inspire her to want to study the subjects that stick out in her head about as well as milk against paper. Her final year of rugby games and messing around with Bolin and Opal during study hall. Her final year of living with her parents (unless of course she ends up moving back after college, which is likely to happen).

 

Korra isn’t sure if she’s ready to give all that up, even though she knows she won’t have a choice in the matter once the time comes.

 

Right now, though, she should be thinking about something _else_ she isn’t ready to give up—even though like with everything else, she has no choice in the matter. Asami Sato, her best friend in the _world_ since she was nine years old, is leaving tomorrow. She’s off to a fancy college in the heart of Zaofu, where she’s going to revolutionize the world of technology in ways that Korra is sure she couldn’t even begin to imagine. And Korra is going to miss her.

Going to miss being able to cross the street to see her best friend just because. Going to miss having somebody’s arms to run into after disappointments and heartbreaks and fights with her ex-boyfriend or her parents or her teachers. Going to miss knowing that there’s somebody who loves her unconditionally who isn’t related to her (or isn’t a much-loved pet). Going to miss being able to spend so much time with the person she loves more than she’d ever thought she could possibly love another person (even if Asami doesn’t know that that’s how Korra truly feels).

 

Yeah, she’s going to miss all of that, but mostly she’s just going to miss sitting on her front porch with her best friend, talking about everything and nothing all at once.

 

How many times have they sat exactly like this and stared out at their quiet street? How many times have they sat exactly like this and shared stupid little secrets, confided about crushes or other things that they couldn’t talk about with their parents? How many times have they sat exactly like this, with Korra’s heart jumping up into her throat and her eyes trying desperately to convey the feelings she’d always thought she was too cool to have to convey in words?

 

Too many times.

Not enough times.

They’ve almost run out of time.

 

Korra gulps down a hard breath, hoping that Asami won’t notice how nervous she’s gotten. She doesn’t know how to start, doesn’t know what to say, but she knows that she should confess her feelings for Asami—and fast—because this is probably the last time they’ll be doing this in a long time, and she wants it to be here.

For some reason Korra knows that if she’s going to tell Asami how she feels, she _needs_ to do it here.

If she doesn’t do it now, she’s never going to do it, and she _should_ , because Asami is leaving in the morning and Korra really doesn’t think she could say this over the phone, or in any place other than the front porch that has been their choice hang-out spot for the last nine years. She turns, and Asami turns in time with her, bright green eyes catching hers by surprise as they always do. It’s moments like this when it strikes her, just how pretty Asami is, and even though Korra knows that her best friend is _so much more_ than that, she can’t help but be a little caught up in it.

Asami’s as beautiful as she is smart, with the only correct way to qualify that being “too much so to be human”.

“Hey, ‘Sami?”

Asami smiles her familiar smile, eyebrow quirked in question. “What’s up? Is everything alright? You look a little…freaked.”

“I just, uh,” Korra pauses. She can’t do this. She wants to—even if she’s not sure how Asami will react—but she just…can’t. “Are you scared to be going to Zaofu all by yourself?”

Asami watches her face for a moment before shaking her head, smile still in place. “Not really. I mean, I’ve been there before, remember? And anyway, the school is going to be giving international students tours of the city, and I’ve also got Kuvira and Baatar Jr. to help me out. There’s…nothing to fear, really.”

Korra nods. She likes Kuvira and her nerdy boyfriend well enough, and they’ve never been mean to Asami or made her cry the way that some of Korra’s favourite idiots ( _Mako_ ) have managed to do on a few occasions. They’re good people to keep around. “It’s really far away though,” she comments idly, because she’s not sure if she’s going to say anything more important than that, but she doesn’t quite want to stop talking.

“Only a few hours on the train,” Asami points out, pinching Korra’s cheek between two fingers as she speaks. At Korra’s scowl, she laughs. “Unless you’re trying to tell me that you wouldn’t want to spend a few hours on a train if it meant getting to come visit me.”

“I never said that,” Korra says, though she can’t fight the laughter that bubbles up in her at the pout that Asami is sporting purely for her benefit. “Of course I’ll come visit you!” She’s not sure when that will be, really, but she fully intends to go see her best friend in Zaofu. Sure, it would be nice if she could say she were visiting her _girlfriend_ …but at the rate things are going, Korra is almost certain she’s not going to find the courage to get the words out.

Asami laughs again, her face falling back into its natural expression, and Korra leans back until she’s lying across the warm wood of her front porch. She kicks her feet up into the air a few times as she mentally kicks herself for being such a useless dweeb about her feelings. Asami lies back too—Korra can tell because of the way the other girl’s ponytail tickles her arm—and after a minute she says, in a voice almost too quiet for Korra to hear, at first, “I’m going to miss you a lot though.”

“Yeah?” Korra asks, hoping that her voice doesn’t squeak. Asami’s always been verbal about her feelings, but something about the way she sounds right now makes Korra feel like maybe, just _maybe_ …

“Yeah, of course! Where else am I going to find someone who’ll come over and interrupt my late-night cram sessions with a box of pizza and two pints of ice cream _right_ as I’m about to lose my mind?” There’s laughter in Asami’s voice as her shoulder bumps Korra’s, and though she’s slightly, disappointed Korra laughs too. She shouldn’t have gotten her own hopes up like that.

How silly of her to even _think_ that Asami might like her too.

“Yeah…but you know, you really need to stop doing that,” Korra says seriously, after a beat, because Asami should be taking better care of herself. Especially now that Korra won’t be around to help her out. “I mean, I could ask Kuvira to check up on you occasionally, but you and I both know she’ll be too busy with her boyfriend and her dance classes and her…what does she study, anyway?”

“She’s going into political science, I think,” Asami says, “And _please_ don’t tell her to do anything. You know she’d take it way too seriously and end up embarrassing me in front of _everyone._  Knowing Kuvira, I’m sure I’d never live it down. She’d probably show up at my dorm with groceries every few days, and yell at me if I hadn’t finished with the other ones already.”

Korra laughs; Kuvira _does_ tend to take things a bit too seriously. “Okay, okay, I won’t tell her anything. But you really need to look out for yourself a bit better, you know? Much as I want to go with you and make sure you eat and sleep and all that, I can’t.” She wishes she could, of course, wishes for it so badly that she’s _almost_ upset she isn’t a genius like Jinora, with the magical ability to skip grades like it’s nothing.

“I’ll be fine, Korra,” Asami says, but Korra can hear the smile in her best friend’s voice. The older girl shifts a bit, reaching down to take Korra’s hand, and Korra nearly jumps at the little squeeze that follows. It makes her feel a bit light-headed, and she’s grateful that she’s already lying down because the world does a little happy spin around her. “Thanks for worrying about me, though.”

“Yeah, of course I worry. I mean, what are friends for, right?” Korra says, except it sounds kind of careless, really, and she immediately regrets it because Asami lets go of her hand and sits up.

“Yeah, exactly,” Asami says, but Korra thinks that there’s a bit of an edge to the older girl’s voice. She sounds off; and Korra would know. “Hey, I just remembered I have to go pack a few more things.” She stands as Korra pulls herself into a sitting position, and Korra is a bit worried that she’s done something wrong until Asami turns to her, offering a hand. Korra takes it and lets the older girl bring her up to her feet.

 

They’re standing facing each other on Korra’s front porch, and they’ve been in the same place so many times before that it shouldn’t feel so strange.

It does.

 

“You’re coming over for dinner tonight, right? My mom said she’s making your favourite.”

“Wouldn’t miss it,” Asami says, and then she’s off across the street, only turning back to smile at Korra once more before heading into her house. Korra doesn’t stop waving until she hears the click of Asami’s door—which isn’t that difficult to pick out since it’s a) a very quiet street and b) a sound with which Korra has long familiarized herself—and then she heads into her own house. No sense lazing about on the porch if Asami isn’t with her.

 

***

 

Dinner goes about as well as always—which is to say, with absolutely no problems—but Asami seems strange. Distant, almost, as if she doesn’t really want to be with Korra and her family even though they’ve pretty much taken her in since her father is never around. Korra’s sure her parents notice, but they don’t seem to be willing to say anything about it and so she doesn’t bring it up either. Instead she just tries her best to get Asami to smile, and even succeeds a couple times.

 

For some reason, she can’t do anything to get the smile to stay put, though, and that’s annoying.

 

Asami offers to help Korra’s mom with the dishes after they’ve finished, and Korra is surprised that her mom accepts the help. Normally when Asami’s over, she just puts everything in the sink and washes up later. Still, Korra can’t blame her mom—or Asami—for feeling a bit weird tonight, so she lets it slide. At one point her father gets up, probably to help her mom and Asami put the plates back up in the highest cabinet or something, and when all three of them come out they look…happy.

 

That’s good, at least.

 

Later, on the porch again, Korra watches Asami hug her parents before turning to her. This is actually happening. She doesn’t realize she’s been frowning until Asami pokes her cheek and says, “Oh come on, I’m only going to be gone until winter break. You’ll live.”

Korra manages to force a laugh that sounds fairly real mixed in with her parents’ but she feels bad. This is _actually_ happening. This is the last time she’s going to see Asami leave her house after dinner until winter break comes. It feels so far away from now.

“We’ll leave you two alone,” says Korra’s father, and she wonders why he’d say something like that, because that’s weird. She doesn’t question it though, just waves to them before they head in. Her mother gives her a _look_ but Korra…isn’t sure how she’s supposed to read that.

Her parents can be _strange_ sometimes.

The second the door clicks into place she’s wrapped up in the tightest hug she can ever remember getting, and Korra can feel Asami shiver a little even though it’s still warm outside. “I’m really going to miss you, Korra.”

“Hey, you’ll only be gone until winter break. You’ll live,” Korra says, but she makes sure that it’s obvious that she’s joking. Asami’s body bounces a bit with her laughter, but Korra doesn’t really want to let her go, so she doesn’t. Asami’s hold on her doesn’t loosen up, either.

They’ve been standing out there like that for at least five minutes before Korra’s front door opens, and her father steps out with Naga’s leash in hand. “I’m sorry, Korra, but would you…?”

Korra nods, releasing Asami (albeit reluctantly) and taking the leash from her father’s outstretched hand. “I’ll take care of it, Dad.” Her father nods once, to her, then again to Asami, and then the door clicks shut again. “Well…I should probably go. You know what Naga gets like.”

“I sure do,” Asami says, fiddling with her hair for a second before she kneels to scratch behind Naga’s ears. “Bye, girl, I’ll miss you too. Love you.”

Naga nuzzles Asami in response, and Korra is almost _jealous_ of her dog for a few seconds, before her best friend stands up and gives her one last hug. “I’ll probably be gone by the time you wake up tomorrow so…see you when I get back.”

“Yeah,” Korra says, and she’s about to leave it at that until she remembers that this is the last thing she’s going to be able to say to Asami—in person, at least—until December. Which is _months_ away. “Uh…’Sami?”

“Yeah?”

“I’m really going to miss you. I…yeah, I’m really, really going to miss you.”

Asami smiles and Korra just wishes she had the guts to say something _else_ that she really feels, except…well, it’s too late now. Asami squeezes her arm once, then turns and walks away.

 

It isn’t going to be for forever, but Korra thinks her best friend is too far away already.

 

She could stop this, maybe…not the Asami-leaving part, but at least the Asami-leaving-before-hearing-about-Korra’s-feelings-for-her part. She could cross the street, bringing Naga along, of course. She could do it and tell Asami how she’s felt for…well, for _years_ now. She could.

But Korra doesn’t.

Instead, she pulls gently on Naga’s leash and guides her dog off the porch and down the street. Towards the park. Away from Asami’s house.

 

 

 

***

 

 

 

It’s around four in the morning when Korra’s phone rings but she picks it up, because that’s _Asami’s_ ringtone. It must be important.

“Asami?”

“Could you…come outside?”

She’s out on her porch in shorts, a tank top, and flip flops almost before Asami can even disconnect the call. “What’s wrong?” she asks as soon as she’s closed her door behind her.

Asami is sitting on the front step, on the left side, like always, and she’s got her stuff—two suitcases and a large duffel—all sitting neatly in front of her. “I…wanted to wait here, if that’s okay? I know it’s kind of selfish of me but...I just felt like if I left from _here_ , it would mean more to me, you know?”

“What?” Korra asks, not because she doesn’t understand so much as because she’s not even sure she’s awake. Is this happening? Is Asami really sitting on her porch right now?

Asami laughs, patting the space beside her—Korra’s space—and Korra plops down onto the cool wood. “I mean, if I left from _here,_ I’d feel…you know, like there’s something that I can come back to. You know my own house hasn’t felt like that kind of place in a long time.”

Korra nods at that, because it makes sense, and they spend a few minutes just sitting there in silence until she realizes that this doesn’t really explain why _she’s_ sitting outside on her front porch at quarter-past-four in the morning. “When is Kuvira coming to get you?”

“She said she’d be here by seven.”

“So…were you just planning on sitting on my front porch for three hours? What if I hadn’t woken up?”

“I would have gone home, I think…but I’m glad you woke up,” Asami says, and Korra can’t help it. She throws an arm around her best friend’s waist, resting her head on Asami’s shoulder until the older girl does the same. More silence follows, and Korra thinks that now would be a good time to do what she hadn’t been able to do the night—hell, the _afternoon_ —before, but she can’t. She’s afraid to ruin this.

It’s nice, just sitting here with Asami.

 

Korra thinks she must have dozed off for a bit, because when she next opens her eyes, Asami is smiling down at her fondly. One hand—callused from years of martial arts—brushes a lock of hair out of her eyes, and Asami laughs. Korra sits up a little straighter, though her head is still mostly rested against Asami’s shoulder, and she coughs, a bit embarrassed because she hadn’t _meant_ to waste an hour—and a half, as her phone tells her—napping.

“This feels like when you started high school, and you used to fall asleep while telling me about rugby practice, remember?” Asami asks, and Korra can’t help but laugh at herself.

Korra doesn’t know why she’s blushing, but she’s glad that it’s getting warmer—she’s got something to blame for the redness of her face. “Yeah…this is kind of our thing.”

“Yeah,” Asami says. “Hey, Korra?”

Korra turns even though she doesn’t really want to show Asami what her face looks like. Her best friend’s face…is _close_. Surprisingly close. Kissable distance.

She doesn’t look away.

“Korra,” Asami starts, and Korra feels the other girl’s breath on her skin. “I’m about to ask you something very important, and I want you to answer me truthfully, okay?”

Korra gulps, but nods, because she can’t lie to Asami normally; and she won’t try now that they’re only hours away from being separated for months. “Yeah, sure.”

Asami takes a breath. “Yesterday…were you…trying to tell me something important?”

“Important?” she asks, hoping Asami can’t feel how hard her heart is pounding in her chest. “Like what?”

“Korra…” Asami trails off, but her eyes never leave Korra’s.

Eventually Korra stops trying to flail about for an excuse and she says, “Yeah, I was.” When Asami only looks at her, prompting more, she takes a deep breath and says, looking Asami right in the face as she speaks, “I was trying to tell you that I really like you. And not as best friends. Like I want…to date you.”

Asami relaxes—Korra hadn’t even noticed she was tense—and before Korra can say anything else, her best friend’s hand is on her cheek and their lips are _this_ close to touching.

“I was hoping you’d say that,” Asami whispers, and Korra pushes herself forward just enough to meet the older girl’s lips.

 

As with everything else she does, Asami is a fantastic kisser, and to Korra it feels like the culmination of every warm feeling she has ever had has returned in full force to create a storm of butterflies in her stomach. She feels…dizzy. But in the best way possible.

 

“Wow,” she says once the porch step stops wobbling under her.

Asami makes a small sound of agreement, laughing a bit before pulling Korra in to her side more tightly than before. “You don’t know how long I’ve thought about doing that…”

“I probably do, honestly,” Korra says, snuggling in to Asami’s side. “Do you think it’s weird?” she asks, because they’re best friends first and foremost, and one kiss—no matter how perfect—isn’t going to just automatically change that.

“What? That we’re best friends who fell in love with each other? Nope,” Asami says. “But I mean…wow that was…really forward. Um…”

It’s Korra’s turn to laugh. “Hey, it’s just me.”

“I know,” Asami says. “I’m…just. I can’t believe you like me. I can’t believe you actually kissed me.”

“Why’s it hard to believe either of those things?” Korra asks, and she’s grinning like an idiot but she doesn’t care. Asami squeezes her side a bit before shaking her head.

“Ha. You have a point.”

The silence between them is now more than companionate. It weighs on them with the sweet weight of promises that they haven’t even spoken yet. Korra fiddles with Asami’s hand while Asami traces patterns in the skin between Korra’s tank top and shorts. They’ve done this before, so many times, but now it’s different.

“So…what does this mean?” Korra asks, because she wants to hear it. She wants to know.

Asami looks at her seriously for a second, before breaking out into a beautiful smile. “Well, I guess if you wanted, it would mean…that when you come to Zaofu, you’ll have to tell people you’re there visiting your girlfriend.”

Korra laughs and kisses Asami again, hitting the corner of her mouth.

“I’d love that!” Korra can’t believe how lucky she is; it’s like something out of a high school movie.

Asami laughs—really all they seem to be doing this morning is laughing and smiling. “I’m glad.”

“Hey, ‘Sami?” Korra asks after a beat, because she’s got the girl and she got the kiss, but there’s still something bothering her just a little bit.

“What is it?”

“I just…I mean I’m _thrilled_ that this is happening but what if you meet somebody you like better in Zaofu? Or what if you get so busy that you decide you don’t want to come back during the break?”

Asami looks at her again, thoughtful and quiet, and Korra waits because she knows her best friend—her girlfriend—so well. She knows that Asami is coming up with something clever to say. Something smart and reassuring and perfect.

“You notice how we always end up here?” Asami’s question takes her by surprise, but Korra tries her best to think up an answer.

“On the porch?”

Asami laughs, squeezing Korra’s side a bit before saying, “I mostly just meant together…but now that you mention it, yes, that too.”

“Yeah?” Korra says, because she’s not sure where this is going.

“Well,” Asami says, pushing a stubborn lock of hair behind Korra’s ear, “I don’t know about you, but whenever I’m sad, or stressed, or angry, I think about how much I like just being here, on this porch, with you, and I feel better. When I’ve had enough of what I’m doing, all I want is to come back here to be with you. And I’m never going to stop feeling that way.”

Korra knows that her blush must be so dark that she looks _bruised_ , but she can’t help it when Asami is talking like that. “You’re so corny.”

“I know…but I mean it. As long as you want me, I’m going to come back here to this porch, to you, and nothing’s going to change that; not if I can help it. Okay?”

Korra takes her girlfriend’s hand and squeezes, because she can’t really think of a way to respond without sounding cheesy or clichéd, and Asami deserves better. The sound of an engine reaches her ears, and when Korra’s head tilts towards the sound she sees Kuvira’s familiar green pick-up. Asami has to go, and Korra has to let her go.

 

It’s midway through the last month of summer and soon Korra will be heading into her final year of high school. Korra isn’t sure if she’s ready to give up a lot of what she’s got going on, even though she knows she won’t have a choice in the matter once the time comes. She has a lot to worry about, a lot to think about, a lot to enjoy while it lasts…but Asami is right.

This thing they have, this porch, this bond, these feelings?

She’s not going to just sit back and let them change. She’s not going to pretend like this isn’t one of the most important things in her life, because it is. As long as Asami wants to come back, she’ll be here. Not waiting, not really, because she has her own life to live too, her own things to do, but she’ll be here.

 

And nothing’s going to change that; not if she can help it.

**Author's Note:**

> I am running so late on these, and I hate myself for it but I MUST SOLDIER ON. T^T


End file.
